New Delhi: Hardik Pandya starred with the ball as Baroda edged past Bengal in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy quarter-final at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. In a match-up between the two superstars of Indian cricket, Pandya outshone his compatriot to power Baroda to a 41-run win and send his team into the semi-final. Baroda joined Madhya Pradesh in the last four of India’s premier T20 competition. Earlier in the day, MP defeated Saurashtra by six wickets to seal a place in the semis.
Baroda’s strong start: Rawat and Singh’s opening partnership
Sent into bat, Baroda posted a formidable total of 172 for 7 in 20 overs thanks to a superb opening partnership between Shashwat Rawat (40 off 26 balls) and Abhimanyu Singh (37 off 34 balls). Even though star batters like Hardik Pandya and his brother Krunal failed to capitalise on the good start, the 90-run opening stand in 9.4 balls laid the platform for a strong total. Shivalik Sharma, Bhanu Pania and Vishnu Solanki all made useful contributions in the death overs to take Baroda’s total past 170.
For Bengal, star pacer Mohammed Shami picked up two wickets but was expensive, conceding 43 runs in 4 overs.
Bengal’s collapse: Lukman Meriwala makes instant impact
In reply, Bengal got off to a decent start against the new ball but lost the way after the dismissal of opening batter Abishek Porel (22 off 13 balls). Lukman Meriwala wreaked havoc with the new ball and dismissed three batters in one over as Bengal lost three wickets for 0 and slumped to 29 for 0 to 31 for 4 in the space of seven deliveries.
Pandya’s bowling prowess
Hardik Pandya did the rest and bowled a dream spell, taking three wickets for 27 in 4 overs. Shahbaz Ahmed fought a lone battle for Bengal, scoring a valiant half-century. His fight knock ended in the 18th over by Atit Seth, who also picked up three wickets. Bengal’s innings folded for 131 in the 18th over as Baroda stormed into the semi-final with a commanding win.
Baroda enter the semis 👏
They defend 172 by bowling out Bengal for 131 🙌
3⃣ wickets each for Lukman Meriwala, Hardik Pandya & Atit Sheth
Shahbaz Ahmed played a fighting knock of 55(36)#SMAT | @IDFCFIRSTBank
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/FDmKRaHa9X pic.twitter.com/RvqXN1u3w1
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) December 11, 2024
The remaining two quarterfinals – Mumbai vs Vidarbha and Delhi vs Uttar Pradesh – to be played today, will decide the last two semifinalists of the T20 competition.
SMAT quarter-finals: Baroda defeated Bengal by 41 runs in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy quarterfinals. Hardik Pandya starred with the ball, taking three wickets for 27 runs. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
